The invention relates to latch mechanisms, such as those used in automotive applications including, but not limited to, truck end gates or “tailgates”, vehicular rear hatches, lift gates, trunks, and side entry doors.
Electrically-powered release latches have posed a challenge in assembly plants when it becomes necessary to open a door or gate before power is supplied to the vehicle. As such, some latches have been modified with the addition of a dedicated mechanical release device, such as a lever that can be actuated by manually pulling an attached tether. This function becomes significantly more complex when the electric release latch also provides a power cinching function for electrically closing the door or gate, as the cinching mechanism must be disengaged prior to manual release. Thus, power cinching and release latches may employ complex mechanisms for disengaging the cinching mechanism and subsequently releasing the latch, or in some cases, may require destructive disassembly of the latch to disengage the cinching mechanism.